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LISTEN TO SHIRLEY PLAY & SING THE POEM 
Hi, friends, today, I would like to introduce a new Chinese classical poem by Tang Dynasty poet Wang Wei
Jiuyue Jiuri Yi Shangdo Xiongdi -- Thinking of My Brother on the Double Ninth Festival .
Wang Wei is one of my favorite Tang Dynasty poets. He was born in Shannxi. When he was 15 years old, he went to Chang-an ? today’s Xian to start his career. After he past the Examination which guaranteed him entry into literary and official circles and his outstanding talents on administration, poetry, calligrapher, music and painting made him immediately appointed as an Assistant Secretary for Music. Then he was in the situation to be demote for a while, to be used for a while, to be demoted again, to be used again... so that he had been to many places included the northwest frontier for 3 years. His last position was a prime minister.
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Wang Wei never got remarried after his wife died when he was 30. But he made some very high accomplishments on poetry, painting, music and calligraphy except as a successful official. He was the founder of Chinese splash-ink landscape painting. He was also one of founders of Chinese landscape poetry as well. So, people comment his poems and pictures as: There are pictures in his poems, there are poems in his painting... Now there are still more than 400 poems in the world.
This poem was written in the third year, when he was 17 years old, to express his thinking of feelings to his family on the traditional Chinese festival -- the Double Ninth Festival and imagine how people stepped on high places and to collect the dogwood as some apotropaion to ward off evil. Right now, the Double Ninth Festival has become the Chinese Old People’s Day.
As usual, I wrote a piece of music to match this poem and hope you enjoy it. :-)
MAIN MEANING OF THE POEMLISTEN TO SHIRLEY PLAY & SING THE POEM :
Thinking of My Brother on the Double Ninth Festival
Wang Wei (Tang)
As an alone guest in a strange place,
I get double homesick on the festival day.
I can imagine from far away
that my brother is stepping on some high hill
to collect the dogwood as apotropaion
all of the family members are sticking it
everywhere and everyone,
then they just find
there is no me among them…
Attach: A Translation by Hubei Education College
On the Mountain Holiday Thinking of My Brothers in Shandong
All alone in a foreign land,
I am twice as homesick on this day
When brothers carry dogwood up the mountain,
Each of them a branch-and my branch missing.
NEW WORDS:
Please hit any Chinese character that you need helped, to see its Chinese pinyin, pronunciation, and meaning and follow me to read it.
CHINESE CHARACTER AND PRONUNCIATION LISTEN TO SHIRLEY PLAY & SING THE POEM :
九月九日忆山东兄弟
王维 (唐)
独在异乡为异客，
每逢佳节倍思亲。
遥知兄弟登高处，
遍插茱萸少一人。
If you have any questions, comments and suggestions, please write to shirley@ebridge.cn , or shirleyz004@yahoo.com, You are welcomed to publish your opinions in Forum For Friends as well.
--Shirley
Written, Translated and Recorded, May 16, 2006
